29 Mar 2016

Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Anfield? It sounds improbable, but Liverpool have been linked with 'amazing' Swedish striker several times over the last year, and today, the goalscoring 'beast' has confirmed that a move to the Premier League is possible this summer.

In April 2015, The Independent claimed that Liverpool 'could sign' Ibrahimovic for a 'cut-price' fee.

Soon after, Sky Sports claimed that Liverpool were among a 'number of European clubs interested to signing Ibrahimovic.

When asked today about a possible move to the Premier League, Ibrahimovic - reportedly £270k-a-week at PSG - told reporters:

"The league that is most talked about is the Premier League, and yes, there is interest [in me] - I can confirm that. When all the cards are on the table, we’ll then see who wants it more".

I'd love to see Ibrahimovic at Liverpool; he's a winner, and like most winners, he has an indefatigable will to succeed, which rubs off on the players around him.

The Swede has done the business wherever he's played, and his stunning goals/assists record is a testament to his perennial effectiveness:

Superb stats, and even at the age of 34, Ibrahimovic - described by Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard as 'world-class' is still one of the best strikers in the world. This season, for example, Ibrahimovic has 51 goals/assists in 44 games for PSG, which proves he's still operating at the highest level.

Unfortunately, Liverpool fans drunk on Jurgen Klopp's Gegenpressing Kool-Aid will probably reject Ibrahimovic because he doesn't run/press enough. Who cares? It's irrelevant. The guy is a goalscoring machine, and only players like Messi, Ronaldo, and Suarez have comparable records.

I couldn't care less if Ibrahimovic (or indeed any forward) fails to run 20 miles a game - a striker's primary role is to score goals, and if that's happening consistently, then leave him alone and let the midfielders and defenders do all the donkey work.

As much as I'd love to see him at Anfield, I really hope the Reds don't sign Ibrahimovic. Klopp will inevitably try and change his game (by forcing him to run/press more), and that will probably lead to underperformance, which will then be blamed on the player, rather than manager.

You don't try and change players like Ibrahimovic, Messi, Suarez, and Ronaldo - it's arrogance to even attempt it. You just let them do their thing, build the team around them, and watch the trophies roll in.

It's all moot anyway - Ibrahimovic is too expensive, so it will never happen.